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Would love some good iPad (1 or 2) advice

PBz

PBz

macrumors 68030
Original poster
Nov 3, 2005
2,616
1,577
SoCal
I returned my second iPad 2 due to significant light-leak (also had dust under the screen and a screen that looked to be close to separating sightly). I have a $900 Apple Store credit but can get an iPad 1 (64GB 3G) for $529.. after tax that's $331 I could bank towards the iPad 3 and not have to keep returning units or sit on units with flashlights shining out the side while watching Netflix.

Please don't turn this into a bash.. I am seriously asking the advice of iPad 1 users or iPad 2 upgraders from iPad 1 if the upgrade is THAT significant. My usage would be web, email, social media, watching movies and some gaming. I'm assuming that Real Racing HD will be better on the 2 but other more graphically-basic games could be just fine.

I may have an iPad 2 on hold for me today but am seriously trying to decide if it would be better to sit the 2 out and play the safe card with the 1. Heck, I have seen a LOT of comments about people not has happy with the video playback of the 2 versus the 1.

Input and feedback is greatly appreciated. Thank you.
 
If your not one that always has to have the latest and greatest then the iPad 1 would be fine for your needs. Although the new design is really nice, and is something you should take into consideration.
 
Thank you. I am pretty indifferent to the hardware as I kind of like the 1 but also think the 2 is impressive (so thin). The main question I have is if people have noticed major gains in web performance, app speed, etc.

For example in the YouTube comps I have seen it looks like the difference in page-loading speed is often measured in 5 seconds or less and these were often no-cache loads.

I don't use Garage Band, I have an iPhone 4 for FaceTime and would rarely use iMovie (and have it on my Mac).

Love the feedback.
 
Nothing dramatic but having been using both 1 and 2 side by side for about a week or so, I begin to notice that there are nagging slow downs that you don't really think is a big deal, but kind of bugging in iPad 1. However the iPad 1 remains supremely usable and I don't think it'd make difference to most people unless they leave a lot of tabs open in the browser.

On the other hand, some apps do feel significantly faster on the iPad 2 and when more apps that utilize the extra resources come out, we'll definitely see the benefit of the iPad 2, so that's something to think about. However for now the iPad 1 remains a great value, especially if you need a lot of storage for photos, etc.
 
Something else I have notices with the iPad 2 is that if you have a bunch of tabs open in Safari it doesn't have to reload them when switching back and fourth like the iPad 1 does. This is because the iPad 2 now has 512MB of RAM.
 
Jphillippe said:
Apple is tricky.. My iPad 1 was never buggy till I updated to 4.3.... That is quite suspicious... Seems like a marketing move
Click to expand...

4.3 has definitely affected my iPhone 4 but the difference is minimal. I thought I noticed a few things (some lag) and compared my iPhone with my wife's (she never updates til' I do it) and confirmed the differences. Nothing big but I did lose some "snappy". :)
 
The upgrade from the iPad 1 to the iPad 2 is not necessary. There isn't much of a difference between the two. (Now some nerd is going to bring out all the hardware update improvements) I really don't care if the iPad 2 loads web pages 1 second faster than the original iPad.

I've never once used FaceTime on my iPhone, so it's not going to start on my iPad 2. And a rear facing camera? It's like taking pictures with a clipboard. I own the iPad 2 and my sister has an original iPad. I don't see a point of spending $500 to update to the iPad 2. There really is no difference. If you can get a cheap iPad first generation, then do that.
 
I had the iPad 1 for almost a whole year and have had the iPad 2 for about 2 weeks now. While it is difficult to advice people who already have the iPad 1 to upgrade to the iPad 2, if its a new purchase I think you must go for the iPad 2. To me the Safari performance and the size/weight really make a difference. I always felt the 1 was a little slow rendering web pages and this problem is solved in the 2. Now the 2 is a real pleasure to use and I have been booting up the laptop less and less. I think with the upcoming 5.0 release who knows what features Apple will add that only work on the 2! Go with the 2!!!
 
Since you are not over-the-moon about the 2 I suggest you get the first one. As there is no restocking fee, you have 14 days to decide if it feels slow or you want a different capacity. If it turns out you feel it drags, with loading web pages, loading big games, etc you can return it and upgrade to the newest.
 
darngooddesign said:
Since you are not over-the-moon about the 2 I suggest you get the first one. As there is no restocking fee, you have 14 days to decide if it feels slow or you want a different capacity. If it turns out you feel it drags, with loading web pages, loading big games, etc you can return it and upgrade to the newest.
Click to expand...

This is a really good idea. Heck, even now used iPad 1 64GB 3G are going for over $500! Even if they go down to $300 - 400ish.. that plus my $331 credit has me well in the ballpark for a new one if outside of the 14 days (iPad 2 or 3).
 
If you don't want the iPad 2, then you probably don't want the iPad 3 either. To me the upgrade was worth it for speed and size. The feel of it is alot less bulkier than the iPad 1, which Apple's new commercial explains it perfectly in that technology kinda gets out of the way of the experience because of its thinness.

I'd say go for iPad 2 because it's at least 10 months before iPad 3 comes out if it follows the regular schedule. And 10 months is like forever in tech time.
 
aluren said:
If you don't want the iPad 2, then you probably don't want the iPad 3 either. To me the upgrade was worth it for speed and size. The feel of it is alot less bulkier than the iPad 1, which Apple's new commercial explains it perfectly in that technology kinda gets out of the way of the experience because of its thinness.

I'd say go for iPad 2 because it's at least 10 months before iPad 3 comes out if it follows the regular schedule. And 10 months is like forever in tech time.
Click to expand...

I do want the iPad 2 but am acting under the assumption that for at least a month or so I will be highly unlikely to get one without some sort of, or multiple, quality issues. From just my two iPad 2s I had light leak (significant on both - no test needed to initially see.. test would just tick you off more), dust under the screen (just one of them) and a screen that seemed to be coming loose left of the home button (just one of them).

I am just trying to decide if saving $331 bucks is worth passing on 2 and waiting on 3 or if I should pay the $900 for the iPad 2 and go through whatever motions it takes to get one without flaws.
 
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